Sunday, June 19, 2005

barely awake but blogging

I shouldn't spend 5% of my waning laptop battery charge on pre-blogging while on a flight home, but I don't feel like working on more pressing tasks so, procrastinate I must.

My weekend recap: Before I embark on this oddly personal travelogue I will (bashfully) share some words from… Jennifer Garner in the pages of SELF (the magazine I felt compelled to buy when I couldn't find JANE anywhere in MSP)… From the (paraphrased) mouth of Jennifer: “For me, one of the things that's most important about… relationships is [sharing] in the minutiae of one another's lives.” Like Jennifer, I've found these times (i.e., summer months as of late) to be difficult because every conversation with friends “has to be about catching up.” Perhaps it is that sense of detachment that is subconsciously pushing me to recount my whole weekend for those in the blogosphere. In any event – here goes…

If you’re leaving San Francisco… be sure to pack some food for along the way…Flew out of SF on Friday night at around 10 p.m. Out of all the airports I’ve visited recently, SFO is truly the pits. Even after spending 12 hours in Albany, NY over New Year's, which was a harrowing and relatively awful experience, I can say with confidence that SFO is one of the most disappointing airports I've been in for quite some time. Yes, it is worse than Albany. Admittedly, some of my disdain is due to the massive construction at the airport but the rest just comes from the natural vibe of the place. The whole airport is inconvenient and usually smells sort of rank. Moreover, the food prices are totally over the top. You'd think that with such little selection vendors might have a heart and lower prices a little bit but NO, they are (behaving like greedy little rational actors and are) out to milk poor travelers for all they're worth. As an illustration, I spent over $10 on one crappy sandwich and a bottle of water. Despite these downsides, I made the most of my time at the forsaken airport by catching up on US Weekly along with all of the clichéd and disturbing news of Tom and Katie, the far inferior "Life in Style" (don’t buy it, there is literally no substance) and the Economist. Question: I wonder if celeb tabloids and the Economist are an unlikely magazine pairing or if many people enjoy my guilty pleasures as well.

Wedding in IndyGood times were had by all. Although I knew about three people at the event I had a lovely time. The readings at the wedding were darling: Velveteen Rabbit and Shakespeare's Sonnet 116 (?). The bride and groom were fantastic as always and, I must say, the bridesmaids' dresses were cute enough to wear again. I did note, and perhaps this is a misguided observation, that people who went to small liberal arts colleges in the middle of nowhere tend to party harder, drunker, and louder, than most of my friends who have tended to graduate from state schools, nerd emporiums or breeding grounds (i.e. Chicago), or Ivies. I’m sure this mostly stems from selection bias (that is only nerdy nerdalicious nerds choose to go to places like Chicago and as one of those nerds my selection is similiarly biased) and not from actual intrinsic levels of maturity, but this caused me to wonder: Does attending college in (for instance) Nowheresville, PA, naturally instill in alumni an aptitude for crazy dancing, clapping while dancing, and general flirtatiousness?

Northwest Airlines definitely not my fave airlineOh, NWA, you almost convinced me to get one of your credit cards so I could start accumulating miles to fly home with more cheaply. Now there’s no way. Since when did caterers take over an hour to deliver sodas to a boarded and ready-to-go plane? Since when did you start charging a dollar for sub-par trail mix instead of giving everyone the same mediocre peanuts? Your seats are uncomfortable, your flight attendants mostly unimpressive from what I saw this weekend, and your prices are outrageous. I object.

The best THREE HOUR layover ever!While at MSP for a long layover I convinced my family to come out and visit. It was so wonderful. They brought me PBJ, yogurt, Dove Chocolate and a water bottle. Everyone came, including my Yia-Yia and my aunt and uncle. My little bro, sadly, was in San Diego en route to Tijuana. As is usual with my family, the whole event was captured on film. My mother even decided that it was critical to document me eating my sandwich. Mouth full and all. These pictures are sure to be fabulous, just like my wacky and delightful clan.

At this point I really must begin doing my work before my battery is completely drained. Adieu.

3 comments:

I admire your fortitude and dedication to blogging. As for reading materials in airports, I must say that the Economist + random celebrity gossip rag (usually in the form of People or US Weekly is an essential companion for any savvy traveler. It's the perfect combo for anyone looking to simultaneously increase knowledge and kill brain cells during their air travels.

What a shame that you had a bad experience with NorthWest Airlines! Unfortunately, NWA isn’t one of the more well-reviewed airlines. Wouldn’t it be great if we owned our own airlines? We’d at least be able to dictate exactly what we’d like the onboard experience to be for patrons like us. Even if we owned just a fraction of an airline, we’d have a say in how things should be running. And hey, not a bad way to make some extra cash, eh?